'Saif an intelligent actor, Kareena instinctive'

Kurbaan's Director, Rensil D'Silva's, interview.

Piping hot

You entered Bollywood as the screenplay writer of Rang De Basanti. Did you always want to direct?

I think that the progression to direction was natural since I had spent 17 years in the ad industry and had directed ad films for nearly 12 years. So while I love to write, I think a director has full control, which I enjoy.

Why choose a serious subject like terrorism for your first project?
The story idea was Karan Johar's. He told me about it and I immediately got completely hooked. It was such an intense love story with so much drama, I couldn't wait to develop it. After I wrote the screenplay Karan suggested that I direct it as well.

What's the best thing about working with Saif Ali Khan?
Saif is an intelligent actor. When you have a strong subject like this, he immediately responds to it so well. He has a hundred ideas a minute. But the best part is that while he will discuss his idea, once he's on the floor he will do just what the director expects.

And Kareena?
Kareena is an instinctive actor. She was quite something and I was blown away by her work.

Their chemistry didn't work in Tashan, do you think it will work in Kurbaan?
It's always a worry to get real-life couples to have on screen chemistry. People somehow think that it doesn't work but I think that their chemistry in Kurbaan is absolutely sizzling. In fact the promos are just out and people have been telling me that their chemistry is visible even in the promos.

How is Kurbaan different from other films based on terrorism?
That is like asking me how all the hundreds of love stories are different from one another. See there are not many movies that deal with terrorism, so the few that are there are bound to be pitted against each other. It's also a misconception that my film is based on September 11. I think each film has its own way of storytelling and different emotions so they cannot be compared.

In what way do you hope to influence people with the film?
My first hope is that people enjoy the film. Recently a lot of films have disappointed people as they pay a lot of money to watch a film. I want them to feel that they got their money's worth. After that I just hope that people realise that they cannot be so prejudiced against Muslims. The media has given us a very one-sided view about the terrorist situation throughout the world. We need to talk more about innocent Muslims who are being victimised because of this prejudice.

Is it true that the release of Kurbaan was moved up by a week so that it didn't clash with De Dana Dan?
I don't know why people are saying that. UTV, who is the distributor of the film, saw that there was an open day with no major release so we just decided to release it on that day. De Dana Dan and Kurbaan are films that have very different audiences so there is no reason why we should feel threatened by it.

"He has a hundred ideas a minute."

Good interview. Getting me all hyped up on Kurbaan now. I like what he said about Kareena, alot of people shes worked with say the same thing.

Nice interview.
I too am getting excited about this movie...<3

I love how he said that he hopes it stops the prejudice against muslims. Even saif said that he loves the fact that there are a lot of moderate voices of islam in the movie as well, so it shows both sides of the story.

^^Finally...looking forward to it now

What I dont understand is...kareena's name is avantika. Why is she seen with her head covered in so many shots? Does ehsaan ask her to convert or somtheing before they get married???